LISTEN: ‘The Conjuring: Last Rites’ Slays at Box Office; Giancarlo Esposito, Shawn Hatosy Talk Biz at Creative Arts Emmy Awards

“The Conjuring: Last Rites” busted past all expectations in its debut weekend to make it lucky No. 7 of a streak of successful openings at the box office for distributor Warner Bros. Pictures.

On today’s episode of “Daily Variety” podcast, Rebecca Rubin, Variety’s box office chief, breaks down the strong showing for film No. 9 in the “Conjuring” horror franchises. With a total haul of more than $83 million, the film delivered about $20 million more at the domestic box office than was forecast. It also performed surprisingly well for a horror title on Imax screens.

“This is the seventh consecutive movie for Warner Bros. to open above $40 million,” Rubin says. “They are the first studio in history to ever achieve that consistent streak. And it’s also notable because they had a pretty rocky start to the year as well as end to 2024.” After misses with “Mickey 17” and “Alto Knights,” the studio has rebounded with “A Minecraft Movie,” “Sinners,” “Final Destination Bloodlines,” “Superman” and “Weapons.”

Warner Bros. Pictures chiefs Pamela Abdy and Michael De Luca deserve credit for putting “an emphasis on filmmaker driven, original fare — what’s been considered the riskiest kind of movie to put out,” Rubin says. “And with a movie like ‘Sinners’ or ‘Weapons,’ those were both original horror films that turned into huge sleeper hits. What they’ve done successfully is lean into directors who have really strong visions, and hoping that that’s going to be the driving factor in the marketing and getting people to come to see these movies.”

Also in the episode, Variety‘s Michael Schneider and Jazz Tangcay weigh in from backstage at the Creative Arts Emmy Awards. The two discuss the trends and read the tea leaves from the early wave of winners leading in to the Sept. 14 main event, which airs this year on CBS. Schneider, who is television editor, noted that the first wave of winners indicates a narrowing race among “Severance” and “The Pitt” on the drama side and “Hacks” and “The Studio.”

“This year, it really is all about ‘The Studio’ versus ‘Hacks.’ And then, of course, ‘Severance’ versus ‘The Pitt.’ And in the guest actor categories in both drama and comedy, it was split 50-50. ‘Severance’ one one. Then ‘The Pitt’ won one. ‘Studio’ won one. And then ‘Hacks won one. So going into the big ceremony next week, it is a race between those shows,” he said.

Tangcay, who is senior artisans editor, pointed to a poignant moment when Jessica Lee Gagné became the first woman to win an Emmy for cinematography in a one-hour program, for her work on “Severance.” Gagné also directed

“It’s crazy to think that no woman has ever won in that category until last night,” Tangcay says. “That was a beautiful moment. We spoke with her backstage and she was like, ‘This was a dream that I’ve wanted for a long time.’ “

Backstage at the Creative Arts, Shawn Hatosy, who won guest actor in a drama series for “The Pitt,” and presenter Giancarlo Esposito both spoke from the heart when asked about issues that the industry faces, from the loss of production in Los Angeles to the decline in moviegoing since the pandemic.

“I know what a set feels like in Los Angeles. I know what experienced crews, how they work, how they operate, and in many cases, the people that I’m meeting, the carpenters, I’m meeting the transportation captains, I’m meeting the makeup people, the hair people, everything,” Hatosy said. “So even more so this recognition and the fact that this show, is not a very expensive show. It it shoots right here in Los Angeles. And so I think that there’s a chance that maybe some other people that make these decisions will, see the success and find a model like it so that we can employ a lot of people in Los Angeles.”

Esposito suggested that exhibitors and studios join forces to take radical steps to reinvigorate the public’s passion for going to the multiplexes.

“Part of the solution is to look at the model in a new way, is to look at how we make film and what we charge for ticket prices in the movie theaters in a new way. We are crying about how streaming has sucked away people going to films and having a social experience together, but we’re not doing anything about it,” Esposito said. “I love that we could stream and sit home and do that. I’m taking nothing away from that. But what about offering just offering a weekend in a movie theater for the big companies who have more than one for free? Or one weekend, all movies are free to reignite people’s passion for film. Get them in the theater. Charge for the popcorn, charge for the soda. But the ticket price is free.”

(Pictured: “Severance” cinematography winner Jessica Lee Gagné at the Creative Arts Emmy Awards)

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